Marika took her parents to all the London attractions, Joe unhappily followed. They were not speaking English and he was left on the outskirts of their conversation. She tried to translate as much as was possible but Joe didn’t take the exclusion lightly and was turning grumpier every day. Towards the end, he spent most of his time in the office instead.

   Their visit was over too soon she felt, but Joe was relieved to be back in the normal state of affairs. In retrospect he disapproved of the amount of time she spent with them and the lack of attention to him, rebuked the negligence for the flat and her chores. She had to agree that her parents’ visit was an intrusion and caused disruptions to their life. It must had been so hard for Joe. He needed his regularity,  his routine to relax. He concentrated so hard on achieving continuous progress at work so they could afford a bigger place and their own family one day. She had jeopardized their future.

   They got married next month in a small ceremony. She announced her marital status to her parents over the phone. When she was five months pregnant, they moved to a four bedroom house in Hampstead. She couldn’t be happier. She was starting her own family in a perfect house with a perfect husband.

S in the A to Z challenge.